“The very rich are different from you and me.” ~ F. Scott Fitzgerald

1. He made $42.5 million in income over the years 2010 and 2011. Off of his investments. He wasn’t working a normal paying job.

2. He and his wife Ann paid an effective tax rate of 13.9% in 2010. They expect to pay a 15.4% rate for 2011. That’s less than Warren Buffett, who famously complained about paying less than his secretary.

3. He is, technically, among the top 1% of the 1%.

4. Romney’s holdings include an undisclosed amount in funds based in the Grand Cayman Islands “and other overseas entities,” like the Bermudas.

5. He also had “a Swiss bank account that was closed in 2010 after an investment adviser decided it could be politically embarrassing.”

6. He has given $7 million, mostly to the Mormon church, over the last two years. He’s effectively giving as much to the Mormon church as he is to our government.

7. His net worth, estimated at $200-250 million, makes him the richest serious candidate ever to run for president.

Quotes.

8. “Referring to the fact that nearly all of his income is taxed as capital gains at a 15 percent rate rather than as earned income at rates of up to 35 percent, Mr. Romney questioned a proposal by Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker, to reduce capital gains taxes to zero.”

9. “Even though he is worth hundreds of millions of dollars, Romney pays a lower tax rate than many middle class Americans,” said Mr. Burton, who now runs a “Super PAC” on behalf of Mr. Obama.

“Romney also has access to complicated legal maneuvers involving offshore accounts and retirement savings that simply are not available to everyday Americans,” Mr. Burton said.

Quotes.

10. “I’m proud of the fact that I pay a lot of taxes.” So proud, Mr. Romney pays lawyers to find him offshore, un-American tax havens and retirement accounts not accessible to middle class Americans, who pay about twice as much percentage-wise in taxes, each year.